Occult death doom ensemble, WOODEN STAKE, rises from their moldy tomb armed with their long-awaited second long player, A Feast Of Virgin Souls. Out now on Razorback Records, the ten-track offering boasts over forty demonic minutes of dark, NWOBHM-infused tracks of lurching brutality led by the possessed banshee vocals of vocalist/bassist Vanessa Nocera. A concept offering influenced by the legend of serial-killer countess Elizabeth Bathory and 1871 Gothic novella Carmilla by Joseph Steridan Le Fan, A Feast Of Virgin Souls is at once punishing and alluring and includes the stunning cover creation of underground art maestro, Mario Lopez (Agitator, Possessor, Warstorm et al).

WOODEN STAKE emerged in 2010 with the release of their Vampire Plague Exorcism demo which earned the critical exaltation of the underground extreme doom metal scene. A tidal wave of seven-inch releases, including a split with Druid Lord in 2011 (Altsphere Production) and Blizaro (Razorback Records) the same year, would ensue. WOODEN STAKE undraped their debut full-length, Dungeon Prayers & Tombyard Serenades, later that year via Razorback and again reaped critical acclaim from underground metallers globally, including Darkthrone’s Fenriz who chose WOODEN STAKE as his Band Of The Month. The album received thousands of plays on YouTube and spread like plague to those who craved extreme doom/death metal with a simultaneously melodic and violent edge. Blabbermouth hailed, “The combination of [former guitarist/drummer] Sarantopoulos’ mighty, dread-spreading riffs and Nocera’s macabre tales and behemoth bass lines constitute a big reason why Dungeon Prayers & Tombyard Serenades is such a compelling release,” while American Aftermath noted, “the music is fuzzy and droning, and the atmosphere sends a cool chill down your spine, but there is something about this band that makes even the most morbid songs seem nice and soothing.” Added Cvlt Nation, “the band is incredibly atmospheric and have managed to carve out their own unique style that blends everything from Black Sabbath to Obituary to Hellhammer to Jex Thoth to Electric Wizard,” furthering, “The spoken word vocal approach pushes you into a surreal state of melancholy which doesn’t last long as it is soon destroyed by some earth-shattering, old-school riffage and hypnotic gloomy atmosphere.”

In 2012, WOODEN STAKE unleashed At The Stroke Of Midnight, a collection of demo and EP material as well as exclusive canticle, “Night Of The Banshee,” recorded specifically for the release. The next two years saw Nocera busy with her two other projects, Skeletal Spectre and Howling. In 2015, WOODEN STAKE returns with the witchy wisdom of A Feast Of Virgin Souls. Featuring Nocera alongside new guitar player and drummer, Willie Wardlaw, the record is out now on Razorback Records with a future vinyl version on the horizon. Further WOODEN STAKE developments, including live ceremonies, to be announced in the coming weeks. Until then, suffer.